The UCLA Football team was selected by the Football Writers Association of America (FWAA) as the National Team of the Week after its come-from-behind victory over Texas A&M in the two teams' season opener.
UCLA erased a 44-10 deficit late in the third quarter, rallying with 35 unanswered points and scoring the winning touchdown with 43 seconds left to notch an epic 45-44 win over Texas A&M on Sunday night. The comeback was one point shy of the all-time NCAA record.
The announcement came on "Off Campus with Mark Packer" on ESPNU Radio on SiriusXM. Each Monday during the season, the FWAA National Team of the Week will be unveiled during the program, which airs weekdays from 4-7 p.m. ET.
The Bruins scored touchdowns on their final five possessions behind the arm of quarterback Josh Rosen, who tallied a career-high 491 passing yards with four touchdowns. Rosen (35-of-59 in the game) threw for 292 yards in the fourth quarter alone as part of UCLA's 306 total yards in the quarter. Tight end Caleb Wilson was Rosen's favorite target, as he set a new school record with 15 receptions for 208 yards, the third-highest receiving total in UCLA's history. Three Bruins receivers – Wilson (205), Darren Andrews (142) and Jordan Lasley (100) – topped 100 yards receiving. UCLA's defense held Texas A&M to just 58 yards in the fourth quarter.
"We didn't know we'd be down by 28 points at halftime. I was so impressed with how they managed their emotions at halftime and how they came back in the second half," UCLA head coach Jim Mora said after the game. "They had confidence in each other. They had a ton of poise. I saw a coaching staff that made great adjustments. I saw players who embraced those adjustments. They owned that. When you do that, you're capable of doing stuff that you did tonight."
The 34-point comeback was the largest come-from-behind win in UCLA's history, topping a 22-point comeback (down 22-0) in the 2005 Sun Bowl, a 50-38 win over Northwestern. UCLA has now won seven consecutive season-openers. This is UCLA's third time to be selected as the FWAA National Team of the Week and its first since 2013.
The Football Writers Association of America has named a national team of the week since the 2002 season. Members of the 12-person FWAA All-America Committee – plus one fan vote from Twitter – decide the weekly honor.
UCLA returns to action on Saturday, Sept. 9 against Hawai'i at the Rose Bowl. Kickoff is at 2 p.m., and the game will be televised live on Pac-12 Network. Tickets are available at uclabruins.com/tickets.